Trump and Musk have instilled fear in business people about losing their funds. Contractors that USAID owes tens of millions of dollars say they might have to shut down or face cases all over the developing world. In fact, new court filings make the claims, which include threats of physical harm to overseas employees over unpaid debts.
USAID was previously in charge of about $43 billion, and most of its work is done by contractors around the world. Some companies undertake hundreds of millions of dollars worth of development projects every year, but they usually don’t make much money from them.
Therefore, many contractors have been affected, and some even lose their credibility. For instance, one big company said US banks won’t lend it more money because they’re afraid the US government won’t keep its funding promises.
Yesterday, a judge told the US government it had to pay what it owed by Wednesday midnight. The US government appealed the decision a few hours later. The plaintiffs have repeatedly said that the Trump administration has disregarded the court’s decisions.
President Trump and Elon Musk believe that USAID should be shut down. Most of USAID’s 10,000 workers have been put on administrative leave, and dozens of contracts have been canceled.
USAID contractors risk fines, tax penalties, and legal action from vendors
One plaintiff, DAI Global LLC, said it has not received any payments from USAID for the $115 million it is owed. Apparently, $70 million is at least 30 days past due. The company has been overseeing US-funded projects in Afghanistan and Iraq after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Now, a $75 million operating capital facility has already been “tapped out.”
DAI has already let go of more than 500 US-based employees. It could face fines, tax penalties, and legal action from several vendors. It could also be sued if it has to suspend up to 4,000 more foreign employees without pay, which is against the law in many countries.
Democracy International is another contractor that USAID owes money to. In a similar filing, Democracy International said it could also be sued overseas if it can’t transfer money for salaries this week.
Eric Bjornlund, Democracy International’s chief executive officer, wrote in a declaration to the court, “In Tunisia, for example, our senior staff/representatives are being threatened by vendors and other creditors with legal jeopardy or physical harm for failure to pay.”
The group said it was owed $3 million for work done before January 24. It has put all 95 of its US workers on furlough, is in danger of being kicked out of its headquarters, and may file for bankruptcy. There are also risks for staff who work abroad.
Chemonics International Inc. also has the same issue. In mid-February, it said it was still owed more than $100 million. Over the last 50 years, it has run more than 1,000 foreign aid projects in more than 100 countries for the US.
Some USAID workers have been ordered by the courts to be reinstated. However, USAID contractors say the agency can’t work with the current staffing levels and that payment approvals have become politicized and have been stopped.
USAID workers on leave to be escorted to take their belongings
As part of President Trump’s plan to shut down the USAID, workers have been asked to come back to the office to retrieve their personal belongings.
According to reports, an email said that staff in Washington would be able to come back for a short time this Thursday or Friday. It said that they would be “escorted to their workspace” and given approximately 15 minutes to get their things together.
The nearly 10,000 people who work at USAID have all been put on administrative leave, except for those who are considered important. There are signs that the Trump government wants to cut 2,000 jobs.
A federal judge gave the Trump administration permission to put thousands of USAID workers on leave. This is bad news for unions that are fighting over what they call an attempt to break up the agency.
Staff members are very worried about how these changes would affect global security. They said that cutting off USAID and foreign help is the same thing as inviting war.
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This articles is written by : Nermeen Nabil Khear Abdelmalak
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